32 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [July 1, ISOO. 
we go further than this and trust the aid 
of science will be invoked. In our recent 
Lecture before the Society of Arts, in re- 
ferring to our Pearl Oyster Fisheries, we 
said : — 
Considering all that science and practical skill 
have done in the breeding oE the edible oyster 
off the Hritish, French, and Italian coasts, and 
Qf the increased knowledge of ocean currents 
and marine zoology geaefally within the past 
thirty years, I think the time has come for a 
fresh scientifie inquii-y into the Pearl Oyster 
Fisheries of the Gulf of Mannar, by calling in 
the most competent naturalists and experts avail- 
able. In this inquiry, the Indian might well 
join with the Ceylon Government, l)ecause the 
former owns certain banks in the proximity of 
Tuticorin which occasionally yield a fishery. 
Now, we are not asking His Excellency Sir 
West Ridgeway to do anything rash. The 
Governor may very well at the outset con- 
fine himself to asking Mr. Chamberlain to 
lay copies of this Report— as well as Mr. 
Holdsworth's and Mr. Thomas's Reports, if 
procurable, (if not the extracts in appendices 
will do) before the leading home scientists: 
—the Presidents of the Royal and Zoological 
Societies and of the British Association for 
Science, in order to ask their opinion as to 
whether further scientific investigation and 
experimental work on the spot is desirable. 
This can do.no harm. It may lead to not- 
able results. Then copies of Sir William 
Twynam's Report should be sent by the 
Ceylon Government to the Indian Govern- 
ment asking that their may be referred to 
their best authorities for any comment. Copies 
should also be sent to the Queensland and 
West Australian Governments with a request 
for any information on the siibject of Pearl 
Oyster or Shell Fisheries embodied by them 
in Reports or other State Papers. The 
United States Government should also have 
a copy and be asked to exchange. We saw 
some years ago Reports on Californian and 
Central American Pearl Fisheries which 
would certainly be tiseful. We fear there is 
no authority to tell us about the Pearl 
Oyster Fisheries of the Persian Gulf ; but no 
effort should be spared at this time in bring- 
ing together all the available information, 
appertaining to civilized Governments and 
their officers on this interesting and im- 
portant subject ; v/hile the experience of 
marine Zoological stations (at Naples and 
in the Isle of Man, for instance) may throw 
lip-ht on "'spat" and other problems which 
puzzled Mr. Holdsworth thirty years ago, 
and Mr. Thomas at a later date. At any 
rate the highly placed scientific Presidents 
we have mentioned, will be sure, if the matter 
is referred to them to give a conscentious 
opinion to Mr. Chamberlain for the guidance 
of Governor Sir West Ridgeway and his 
Executive Council. Meantime, Sir Wm. 
Twynam deserves special thanks for the 
important service he has added to the long 
list appertaining to his very meritorious 
career as a Public Servant in Ceylon. 
NEW COMPANY. 
Ramie Fibre Spinning Syndicate, Limited, 
(fw,443).~-l'>.c«intcied Marcli 2.3rd, with capital 
£1.5 000 in £1 shares, to adopt au af,'reeinent 
with J. F. Woods, and to grow, cultivate, 
manufacture and deal in rhea and Oiher fibre. 
The subscribers are : — 
Shares. 
E A Fenwick, 42, Redcliffe Sq., S.W., solicitor 1 
G T SimpsoQ, ,39, Oakley Sq.. N W., gentleman 1 
A C C trpeDte!-, 23, Lynrnoutb Road. N., clerk 1 
W Morgan, ,56, Battledeau Road, N., clerk . . 1 
S M Johnson, 49, Rothervvood Road, Putn&y, book- 
keeper . . . . 1 
A 0 Fri.sbee, 19, Swencer Soar], Putney, reporter 1 
G C Train, 41, Pianche Court Road, S.W., clerk 1 
The nnmber of directors is not to be less thaa 
two nor more than seven; the subscribers are to ap- 
point the first ; qualification £100 ; remuneration one 
guinea each per board meetinf? attended. Registeied 
Office. 71-2, King William Street, E. C— Investors' 
Guardian, April 7. 
JAVA GOV^ERNMENT CINCHONA 
PLANTATIONS. 
The official report on the Government cinchona- 
plantations in .Java for the quarter ending Decem- 
ber, 1899, states that owing to the late monsoon 
the rainfall has been abnormally low. The drought 
caused much delay in the operations, which, this 
season, consisted princip.ally of the planting out 
of the young plants reared in tlie nurseries. In 
other resjiects, however (such as damiige caused 
by insect-pests, &c.), the conditions were favour- 
able. An interesting part of the report is that 
dealing with the experiments made witli different 
manures in order to ascertain their action on the 
content of alkaloid in the bark. It was found 
that the application of artitical manures, after 
twelve months' trial, led to no increase in the 
alkaloid-content, but that, on the o her hand, the 
content had increased wliere stabt manure had 
been used. Possibly a longer trial may produce 
better results from tlie application of artificial 
manures ; if so, it would prove a great boon for 
plantations situated at a high elevation 
and at a considerable distance from human 
habitations, as stable-manure is there very 
scarce, and an efficient and inexpensive artificial 
manure would be invaluable. A very useful sub- 
stance appears to have been found in the residue 
from the castor-oil presses— -(. e., that derived from 
the Biciiius spectahilis, which is already known 
in the cultivation of sugar-cane, where it gives ex- 
cellent I'esults. This residue contains 6"7 per cent, 
of nitrogen (oiher samples obtained elsewhere 
contained only .5'46 per cent ) Sundry trials, in 
which about .ajlb. of this residue had been used 
per " boom, " showed an increase in the quinine- 
content of the Ijark, varying from 0'82 to 0'96 per 
cent., but until the experiments are completed the 
results cannot be accepted as definite. Should 
they prove reliable, the cultivation of Eicinus spec- 
tah'dis yixVX no doubt be taken up on a large scale 
near cinchona-plantations. 
In November an auction was held at Bandong 
of cinchona-seeds from the Government planta- 
tions, producing a total of about 760L Twenty 
packets of Ledgeriana seed, containing 23 gram- 
mes (less than 1 oz.) each, were sold in the aggre- 
gate for 7,4o.5fl (more than 620/.), while 60 packets 
of 50 grammes each Succirubra seed were sold for 
about 34?. 
The number of cinchona-plants in the nurseries 
was 1,415,000 Ledgeriana, 267,000 Succii'ubra, and 
25,000 hybrids, or 1,707.000 in all, and in the open 
ground 1,561,000 Ledseriana, 490,000 hybrids 
468,000 Succirubra, and 48,000 officinalis, a total 
of 2,507,000 plants.— Ptoiiiiiiiy Ojoiwioji, May 26. 
♦ • 
"GoAV Tail Hair,"— Mr. Hamel Smith, of Fen 
church Street, London, reports on 12[h'April : — 
" TliH demand forCow Tail Hair, if of good length, 
well-washed, and free of skin and bone, is still 
very good. Such hair is now selling readily at 
lid per lb., against 6d or 7d a year or so ago. 
The hair is sent over from India, press packed in 
bales of 300 to 400 lb. each." 
